Last season’s best junior skier in the world, Gina del Rio, comes from Andorra. He has a black belt in karate.
Andorra’s Gina del Rio swept the prize table last season at the Junior World Championships. Jussi Saarinen
The parents are keen skiers, and the performance venues are close to the home. The child follows his parents’ example and gets on skis. He gets so excited that he spends all his free time on the track. Snow is the best element a child knows.
So the story would be very ordinary in Norway, Sweden, Finland or Russia, but extremely unusual in Andorra.
It is a Lilliputian-like mountain state of about 80,000 inhabitants in the Pyrenees between Spain and France. The country’s main sports are football and alpine skiing.
A few hundred people practice cross-country skiing. One of them is Gina del Rio20.
She is the hottest women’s junior skier in the world right now. Del Rio cleaned the prize table in an almost sensational way last season in Planica at the Junior World Championships: gold in the free sprint, silver in the traditional 10 and bronze in the free 20 kilometers.
– I was super satisfied with last season. I didn’t expect that, del Rio commented.
Kolari
Gina del Rio is making strong progress with the Wassberg technique. PDO
The debut in the World Cup was also an exceptional success. In the free sprint at the Salpausselkä Games last March, del Rio was 16/64th in the time trial.
– I was very, very satisfied, but then there was a crash with a Finn.
In the semifinals, the Andorran collided Hilla Niemelän with, and there was no further matter. The final result was 21st.
– This season, the situation is completely different, because I am among the big girls.
In the Toblach free sprint that opened the Tour de Ski last Saturday, del Rio was 28th. He still skied the next day in the traditional 15 km mass start to 56th place, until he hit the skis in the bag as planned.
– It was all right, even though qualifying in Toblach was difficult, says del Rio.
– In the future, I want to be at the forefront of the world, even though there are many top women in front of me, adds the Andorran.
Black belt
In the World Cup, the Andorran has been at his best in 21st place. Jussi Saarinen
Iltalehti’s skiing expert Reijo Jylhä observed the skiing of the Andorran with a magnifying glass.
– He is quite small, muscular, powerful and a capable skier. Technically, skiing is elastic. From what I heard, he was the best at skiing the free Wassberg technique at last season’s Junior World Championships. He skis “wassu” so well that even men could follow his example, Jylhä analysed.
– Traditional skiing is clearly behind freestyle skiing, but he must be in good shape because he can achieve results with both types of skiing, the expert adds.
Del Rio says that karate got into his body. He started martial arts at the age of 6 and it was the main sport for two years as a teenager. Del Rio has a black belt in karate.
You won’t knock out all the world’s best female skiers on the track yet, but on the tatami, it seems to be the case?
– Ha, ha! You can come, del Rio laughs and adds that nowadays karate is just fun for him.
Sensation in mind
Irineu Esteve Altimiras is the most successful athlete in Andorra’s cross-country history. PASI LEISMA
Del Rio, who lives in his native country, studies business administration at the Open University of Catalonia almost 100 percent remotely.
The relationship with Spain is close anyway, as the coach and occasional training buddies can be found in the neighboring country.
– Of course, there are many uncertainty factors. She is Andorra’s only female skier, and the partner country is Spain. That has its own difficulties, Jylhä estimates.
– From that background, it is much more challenging to get to the top of the world, at least quickly, than from a bigger skiing country, the expert adds.
After changing citizenship from Germany to Spain Johann Mühlegg ignore, no Andorran or Spaniard has ever won a mc race in skiing. Andorra has come the closest Irineu Esteve Altimiras. The 28-year-old man, who is participating in this year’s Tour as well, has been sixth at best.
– I have a friend in Andorra with whom I train. Sometimes I train with Esteve Altimiras, but he is too fast for me, says del Rio.
– Won’t one of us make skiing history in the future and win the World Cup as the first Andorran, skier pova.